Government Inspector review

I WOULD liken this performance of The Government Inspector to an uncut diamond - dazzling and beautiful but in need of polishing up.

This was the UK Premiere of Nikolai Gogol’s satirical play with an all-star cast from the Young Vic theatre company.

Julian Barratt of the Mighty Boosh, Smack the Pony’s Doon Mackinchan and rising theatre star Kyle Soller led the lines, and their natural comic timing really added to the whole experience.

The play revolves around the news that a government inspector is due to arrive in a small Russian town which sends its bureaucrats into a panicked frenzy.

A simple case of mistaken identity exposes the hypocrisy and corruption at the heart of the town in this biting moral satire.

Nerves were clearly a little frayed which can’t have been helped by the news that lead man Kyle Soller had injured his ankle and would have to perform on crutches.

He could have withdrawn or been forgiven for providing a half-hearted effort, but instead he triumphantly rose to the occasion giving an engaging performance as the bon vivant gambling addict from St Petersburg mistaken for the government inspector.

Julian Barratt also deserves a mention. He was every inch the Howard Moon character from Mighty Boosh, but also added some extra dimensions that the television show didn’t provide, proving his versatility on stage. Indeed there were some very Boosh-esque moments with surreal masks and quirky lines.

It didn’t all go to plan with lines missed, people occasionally stood in the wrong place etc but those will have been quickly ironed out ahead of its run in London.

Overall this was great fun, albeit slightly too long, with a good blend of hilarity, and quite sinister moments and is definitely worth watching.

Jamie Smith

Verdict: Fun and engaging